Realize
by Arctimon
Summary: In the process of Isabella getting Phineas to notice his flaws, both of them will realize something entirely different.  The final chapter is up!
1. A Hard Day's Night

**DISCLAIMER: **_All characters of Phineas and Ferb are the property of Dan Povenmire, Jeff "Swampy" Marsh, and Disney Channel._

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 1 – A Hard Day's Night<strong>_

The last day of school is a time known for its rambunctious mayhem. The students of Danville High were no different than you or I, and were more than a little eager to relieve the hallways of their presence for the summer. Lockers were cleaned out, exams were passed to the students' eager (or in the case of Buford, not so eager) hands, and numbers were exchanged for the new students to make plans with the friends they'd made over the year.

Then the final bell rang and the population flooded out of the front doors, excited to leave the thought of school behind and for the actions of summer to begin.

What a feeling that was. Isabella would have to make a note to remember that, because she sure wasn't feeling it now.

Oh, she had ran out of the school with the rest of her friends in celebration of their first year of high school, talked excitedly on the bus about her plans to get a ton of new badges, and sat in her room daydreaming about her crush, Phineas Flynn, and what over-the-top contraptions he would be making for the next three months.

Then her phone rang.

And speak of _el diablo_, it was her red-haired neighbor with another crazy idea.

Well...crazy to _her_.

Isabella pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to calm the impending headache. In Phineas' defense, doing all of their summer homework that night made sense; if they did it all in one night, he explained, that would leave the entire rest of the summer to do whatever they wanted.

The problem, Isabella had realized, was the sheer amount of work to do.

She had strolled right over to the house, greeting Phineas with her traditional "Whatcha' doin'?" and immediately starting on her science essay. Both Phineas and Ferb had joined her not long after, and after a couple of hours (and a little help from Ferb), she was able to complete it with little difficulty. Her English paper was not so lucky; droning through pages upon pages of old Shakespeare was not her idea of a good time. Perhaps it was when she was still ten, but now that she was four years older, the whole subject seemed kind of dull.

Quickly seeing the amount of work to complete and the growing frown upon her face, Phineas was quick to suggest that she could spend the night at his house. Isabella, staring at her encyclopedia, only heard part of his proposal, but upon registering "spend", "night", and "house", she immediately squealed her consent, the sheer volume of her voice sending Phineas' pet platypus careening out of the rocking chair.

However, even after sitting with the family for dinner and a quick trip back home to gather some belongings, Isabella still wasn't done with the entirety of her work. She guessed that that was the point; no one, not even the great, wonderful, dashing Phineas Flynn was going to be able to finish all of the work in one night.

It sure wasn't for lack of trying.

Phineas was making a valiant effort, having finished his Shop Class essay, an atom model for his Chemistry class, a paper on grammar for English, and was currently talking with Baljeet on his phone about Pythagorean formulas. Papers were strewn all over his half of the coffee table, themselves littered with doodles, problems, and snippets.

Isabella dropped her pencil and leaned back on the couch, sighing. She looked at the grandfather clock and saw that it was eleven o'clock, bedtime for a rational person. Ferb had done the intelligent thing and gone to bed at a reasonable time; she knew the green-haired teen was smart enough to layer his homework over the week and get it done. Candace has withdrawn from any sort of work; she had finished her classes at Danville University for the spring, and there was no way that she "was going to stay up any longer than she had to", in her words.

So it was just her and Phineas, the situation that Isabella had dreamed of since she had met him such a long time ago. Of course, she imagined it would have been something better than trying to cram a summer's worth of homework in one night, but at least she was with him, giggling at his jokes or laughing whenever they came across a funny passage in a book.

But enough was enough. She was tired and needed sleep. Grabbing her pillow and blanket, getting dressed in her pajamas (purple shorts with a white and purple shirt), and packing up her school things wasn't enough of a hint, apparently.

Isabella needed him to go to bed. For his sake and hers. And if he didn't get the jist now, she would strangle him.

With love.

And then her hands.

"Hey, Phineas," Isabella said, turning her head toward her best friend. "Whatcha' doin'?"

"Math work, still," Phineas replied, scribbling yet another note on a spare piece of paper.

"Why don't you take a break? You look awfully tired."

Phineas narrowed his eyes, partly to hide the redness from Isabella. "Nope, gotta finish this."

"Phineas, you need to go to bed. You're gonna get an aneurysm or something," Isabella pleaded.

"You only get aneurysms from injury or heredity, not overdoing." Phineas grinned, glancing at her. "If you read my Science paper, you would know that."

Isabella smiled weakly, relieved that he was still attempting humor. "I will read it, Phineas...tomorrow. You know, the day that's coming in less than an hour."

She saw him glance at his phone, then back at his paper. "I just need to call Baljeet back about this one problem." He reached for his cell-

But his hand never got there. It was grabbed by Isabella, who was now on the verge of a breakdown.

"Phineas, I'm not going to let you go brain-dead over some stupid homework that you can do another time. Besides, Baljeet's probably asleep. Like a _normal_ person," Isabella emphasized.

"Isabella...it's just homework," Phineas said. "It's not going to kill me."

"Yeah, well, _I'm_ going to kill you if you don't stop. You're my best friend, Phineas." Isabella squeezed his hand tighter. "I love you too much to see you do this to yourself."

Phineas looked at her hand still resting on his, then raised a groggy eyebrow at his friend. "Wait...what?"

Only then did Isabella realize the critical error in her conversation. One word. One dang word had done her in.

She had spent so much time over the past several years concocting plan after plan to get Phineas to notice her. The Night of the Falling Stars Dance, the movies, pep rallies. Every single event was another opportunity for her to get her man. And yet it seemed somewhat fitting that a casual slip of the tongue was the way it was going to go down.

Isabella looked into Phineas' eyes, the whites still red from the work but his blue irises still shining bright, thirsting for more information. Information, Isabella thought, that she would finally divulge after so many years.

"Phineas, I-"

Three things then happened in a very short amount of time.

A tremendous flash came from outside.

A thunderous crash followed.

And then the lights went out.

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><p><strong>AUTHOR'S NOTE:<strong> If you're confused about the end, don't think of it as a random insert. Think of it as a "comically convenient weather pattern".

This is going to be a three or four chapter story, depending on whether I want to split the last chapter into two.

I was going to put this up over the weekend, but I may be too busy to do that, so I decided to put this out a little early this week. Depending on whether my plans go through or not, there may be either Chapter 2 or another long one-shot that I'm almost finished with later this week.

In the meantime...enjoy. Read and review, if you like.


	2. Maybe When The Lights Go Out

_**Disclaimer: **I still own nothing, in case anyone was wondering._

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 2 - Maybe When The Lights Go Out...<strong>_

Being raised in a Mexican and Jewish household gave Isabella access to double the cultural exposure than a normal upbringing would have. Unfortunately, it also gave her access to double the amount of curse words, all of which were bubbling in her mind at this particular moment. Choosing whether to shout "¡_Maldita sea!_" or "_La'azazel itcha_!" to the gods was, if nothing, an interesting decision. However, as she sat in the dark waiting for Phineas to come back, neither option was helping ease her irritated brain.

Isabella had not even noticed the storm roll through; it had snuck upon the town quite quickly. The rain was steadily falling now, although no more thunder or lightning had been sensed by her since the lights went out. Listening to the rain beat its rhythm on the roof, she wondered if it was just the irony gods playing a cruel joke on her.

She saw the beam from Phineas' flashlight in the doorway, and seconds later his frame came into view. It looked like Phineas had crept up to his room while he was checking the fuse box, shedding his sweatshirt and jeans for an orange t-shirt and gym shorts. Trying not to think about how much skin he was showing, Isabella looked out the window while her best friend sat back on the couch.

"So Phineas, how'd it go in the basement?"

"It wasn't a blown fuse; all of ours are still working," Phineas surmised, setting the flashlight on the table. "I ran into Dad downstairs. He thinks a transformer must have been hit by the lightning. From the looks of it, everyone on the street lost their power too."

"So…what now?"

"Well, we can't do anything until morning. Dad went back to sleep. It doesn't sound like Ferb was awake at all." Phineas glanced at the ceiling. "I'm not surprised, though. It takes a herd of elephants for him to wake up."

Isabella raised an eyebrow at the red-haired teen. "And you know that because…"

"I had a herd of elephants run through the house for testing purposes."

Isabella giggled. "Of course you did."

Phineas grabbed the flashlight off of the table, trying to balance it on its end. "Stupid non-perpendicular flashlight end."

"Here, Phin," Isabella said, taking the light in her hands. "Let me grab something from the kitchen."

With that, she was off. Phineas heard her rumbling through the cabinets, and a few moments later she came back in the room with a mason jar with a lit candle inside.

"There we go." Isabella set the jar down on the table, dimly illuminating the living room. It wasn't much, but it was enough to see Phineas proper. "Now we don't have to sit uncomfortably in the dark," she added.

_Now we can sit uncomfortably in candlelight_, she thought grimly.

Isabella sat back on the couch, cross-legged. It was now beginning to seem that the longer she sat with him in the living room, the more she was getting frustrated. It wasn't because of him (kind of), but it seemed some more irony gods were starting their shenanigans again. Being stuck in a house having no power with the neighbor you've had a crush on forever would be perfect in any other circumstance, but Isabella knew that Phineas wouldn't get any of her hints even if they were slapped across his face.

In the meantime, she would try to just strike up a conversation. Sitting in silence would do nothing to relieve her uneasiness. The only noises were the drops of rain on the house and the scratching of a pencil on-

Wait a minute. Scratching?

Isabella shook herself out of her reverie and looked at Phineas. Even with just the light of a candle, he was writing some more problems on his math paper.

"_Phineas!_" Isabella almost yelled.

Phineas looked at her, the pencil still poised in the air. "What?"

"Are you still doing homework?"

"Well…yeah. We have light now, right?"

Isabella was incredulous. "That's not the point, Phineas. Do you even remember the conversation we just had? You need to relax. The homework will still be there tomorrow."

"But I don't want it to be there tomorrow."

Isabella anger was slowly boiling over. "You are so hard-headed sometimes, Phineas."

"You call it 'hard-headed', I call it 'determination'." Done with his argument, Phineas started to write again.

Isabella would later conclude that the next few actions she took were her undoing. In the heat of the moment, though, she wasn't in the mood for "conclusion".

"At least let me see if you did your problems right," she said, holding out her hand.

Phineas paused, then gathered his papers and handed them to his best friend. In a flash, Isabella grabbed them and stuffed them in the end table drawer, closing it with a thud.

"Isabella!" Phineas shouted. "What are you doing?" He started to get up from the couch, but Isabella ran in front of him and thrust her hand into his chest, forcing him back down.

"Phineas Flynn, you are not going to do any more homework tonight. You are going. To. Relax." Isabella jabbed a finger in his direction. "And that's whether you like it or not."

"But I have to-"

"No, no you don't."

"But-"

Isabella glared at him, silencing him once again. "You spend almost every day either building something or doing some ridiculous activity. You can't take one night off?"

"Well, technically, I take ten to seven off. That's when I sleep."

"Ha, ha, very funny."

Phineas put his arms on the top of the couch, trying to feign a calm expression on his face. "There, Isabella, are you happy now? I'm relaxed. So relaxed. Relaxed up the wazoo."

"Nope."

"Isabella-" Phineas started, but her death stare caused whatever argument he had in his head to dissipate.

"Here's what's gonna happen, Phineas," Isabella said, crossing her arms. "You're going to sit _there_ (she pointed at his current position) and _stay_ there until I say so."

"Oh yeah? And what are you going to do?"

Isabella turned on the spot, bent down, and proceeded to sit in Phineas' lap, arms still crossed.

"I'm going to sit here until you relax."

Phineas' eyes grew wide. There he was, being lectured by his best friend who was now residing in his lap. He couldn't see how he was ever going to relax ever again.

"What are—" He never got his question out, because he felt something come down lightly on his cheek.

It was Isabella's hand.

"Just relax, Phineas."

He froze, torn between the warm feeling of Isabella's hand on his cheek and the hammering of his heart on his ribcage. She had never touched him like this before; it was only ever the occasional hand hold out of politeness.

"Relax."

This feeling was…nice, though. Smooth. Rhythmic. Almost therapeutic.

"_Relax."_

Phineas noticed that Isabella was now leaning back against his body. Her frame was almost a perfect match for his, fitting together like two puzzle pieces. Her leg brushed up against his, and the skin-on-skin contact sent a jolt of electricity through his body. He tried to suppress the feelings that were bottled up in his chest, along with the way he felt when her foot nudged against his, how her other hand was lightly massaging his thigh, how her hips were a lot more entrancing now that he had a much better feel of-

OK, _now_ he was sure that he would never relax again.

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><p><strong>AUTHOR'S NOTE: <strong>And here.

We.

Go.

It's always interesting (and somewhat difficult) to try to get a feel for teenage versions of these two. You want to keep some parts of their personalities intact (like Phineas' obliviousness and Isabella's crush), but update them enough so that they aren't just "the show's characters, just older". Hopefully I did it justice.

Also, that is "Damn it!" in both Hebrew and Spanish. I'm _pretty_ sure I got the words right (if anyone knows better than I, feel free to PM me and I'll correct it).

Oh yeah...why do all of my chapter titles seem to be song titles? I totally didn't mean to do that. (Yes, I know it's "_Baby_ When The Lights Go Out...", so just humor me.)

I am currently working on Chapter 3, but it is not complete. What I _might_ do is split it up, make the first half Chapter 3, and the second half (the part that I'm writing now) Chapter 4, but that's not set in stone. Just as a reminder, you can always watch my profile page (or favorite it) to know about story updates and also general updates about my writing process or views on things.

In the meantime, read and review, if you like.


	3. A Moment Like This

_**Warning/Disclaimer:**_ There is a LOT of fluff on this page. If you're allergic to it, read it in small doses.  
><em>_

_All characters of Phineas and Ferb are the property of Dan Povenmire, Jeff "Swampy" Marsh, and Disney Channel._

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 3 – A Moment Like This<strong>_

Oh crap.

Isabella's perfect plan to help Phineas relax was not something that the normal, rational-thinking Isabella would have concocted. This was the angry, romantically-frustrated Isabella that had sat in his lap, that was currently stroking his cheek, that was now in a very precarious situation.

And now that the latter personality was finished, the former was now beginning to come back.

Isabella's face began to get hot. The pounding that she could feel in her back was most definitely Phineas' heart. It was a wonder, she thought, that he wasn't aware of hers, for it felt like it was going to slingshot out of her chest.

"So..." Isabella started, trying to keep her voice even. "Relaxed?"

"Um...a little."

Phineas' attempt to not sound nervous, from Isabella's gathering, was failing just as much as hers.

"I'm sorry, Phineas. I didn't mean to make this situation worse." She made an attempt to get up, but was suddenly stopped by pressure on her abdomen. She whirled her head around to see Phineas had grabbed her, preventing her from standing upright. Slowly, he guided her back down into his lap.

"No, no, it's...fine. It's just that I'm not really used to this," Phineas admitted sheepishly.

"Neither am I...clearly." Isabella stole a glance at her best friend's face, and even in the minimal light, she could see the blush creeping up his neck.

"You _did_ say you weren't going to move until I relaxed, and a promise is a promise, right?" Phineas entwined his fingers, resting his hands on Isabella's stomach.

Isabella smiled, placing her hands on his. "Yes, yes it is."

And so they sat there. For a while, the only sound that could be heard was the steady rhythm of the rain outside. Both of their hearts slowed to their normal pace while the better part of an hour rolled by.

Isabella shifted in his embrace, resting her head on his shoulder, cheek slightly touching his neck. The candle on the table, which had been intact earlier, was now resting in a large pile of wax, flame flickering light around the living room.

She was, to her surprise, perfectly content with her situation right now. She always thought that she had to be swept off of her feet by Phineas (growing older had not changed that particular idea of hers). Now that she was comfortably in his arms, it didn't feel necessary anymore.

Now the difficulty was in going further. Isabella couldn't figure out how to do that without burying Phineas' brain in more emotional trauma. Sitting in his lap was one thing. The next step was an entirely different situation altogether.

Uh oh. She felt Phineas' heart start beating harder again. Surely he couldn't be a mind reader?

"So I was thinking," he started. "There's an test that I wanted to conduct."

Never mind. Isabella sighed loudly. "Phineas, if this is about your dang homework-"

"Oh no, it's not...school-related."

"Oh." Isabella was confused. "What is this 'test' you wanted to do about?"

"Well, it's analyzing several variables about the instantaneous amorous contacts between two willing _Homo sapiens_, with a specific focus on osculation."

She turned her head back toward him, completely lost now. "What is that suppose—"

Isabella never got to finish her inquiry, because a second later she felt his cool lips on hers, and she subsequently froze.

He was kissing her.

He was _kissing_ her.

And it was not one of those short, sweet kisses. This was a slow, meaningful lip lock, one that she never expected to get from him.

She could feel his body tense up against hers, his hands tighten their grip around her waist. There was no turning back now. She gave into her urge, the one that had haunted her for their entire friendship. She put her hand on his cheek, deepening the kiss between them.

It was almost a minute later when the teens ultimately broke apart. Isabella looked into Phineas' eyes, flabbergasted at his sudden impulse.

"What was that about?"

Phineas grinned slyly. "I…kinda just wanted to see what it felt like to kiss you."

"Oh yeah?" Isabella smirked. "And how do you feel?"

"Great. Wonderful. Ecstatic. All of the above, really."

It took all of Isabella's strength not to squeal in delight at his response. However, her brain was concocting a new plan in her mind, one that would satisfy both the rational-thinking and the romance-frustrated parts of her brain.

"So, let me tell you what _I_was thinking…" Isabella said, placing a hand on Phineas' chest, "Maybe I could conduct my own experiment."

Phineas stared at her, smiling. "And what sort of experiment were you thinking about?"

"Oh, nothing really." Isabella sat up, turning her body so that her legs were now straddling the teen. "You could say it's more of a continuation of yours."

He felt his hands descending down her sides at their own accord, resting on her hips. "So, it would technically just have stronger parameters."

Isabella inched her head closer to his face, eyes sliding slowly shut. "Yeah, but I think mine will have better results."

Phineas' eyes closed as well, his body not longer in control. "You _would_ think that, wouldn't you?"

"Yes, yes I would."

Their lips grazed, teasing the other unrelentingly. Their breath flowed into each others' mouths, sending a taste of what was to come.

"Ready, Ms. Garcia-Shapiro?"

"When you are, Mr. Flynn."

With that, their lips connected, crying out in hunger for the other. Isabella thought she was going to die from sheer bliss; a meteor could have rammed into the house that very second and she would not have cared in the slightest. Her hands wrapped around Phineas' head, whisking her fingers through his red hair.

Phineas grasped her hips tightly, thrilled with how Isabella was responding to his actions. He knew that kissing her was a risk, but thankfully, it paid off with rewards that he would never ever forget.

He had always thought Isabella was cute, pretty, even beautiful at times. Tonight, however, his view on her was changing drastically to gorgeous, wonderful, _sexy_. The faint smell of strawberries met his nose whenever he breathed, and it drove him wild.

They kissed again and again, each kiss being longer than the last. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they broke apart, gasping heavily from their rigorous activity. Phineas could still feel his friend's breath roll over his face, the warm air sending shivers down his spine.

Isabella was the first to speak, still panting from their "experiment".

"…Wow."

Phineas could not help but chuckle softly. "Yeah, that about sums it up."

She smiled, a mischievous look in her eyes. "Phineas, are you grabbing my butt?"

At her comment, he came to the sudden realization that his left hand was firmly grasping her backside, an action that he certainly did not remember doing during their make-out session. "Umm…maybe?"

Isabella laughed, burying her face in his neck. "That's OK, I have that affect on people." She lightly kissed his neck several times, knowing that Phineas would barely be able to contain himself.

His sharp intake of breath was a dead giveaway.

"Or maybe just on you," she whispered, brushing her lips against his ear.

"Isabella..."

"Hmm?" She was too busy wondering which part of his body to attack next to notice his hands forcing her back.

"Hold on."

She straightened back up, seeing Phineas with an unreadable look on his face. "What's wrong?"

"Isabella, this night has been amazing. I just...don't want us to do something we're going to regret."

"Like what?"

"Like...something."

Isabella suddenly knew what Phineas was getting at. "What? No. Nonononono. I wasn't even thinking of that, Phineas." She clenched his face in her hands and looked into his blue eyes. "I would never force you to do something that would make things between us uncomfortable."

He narrowed his eyes at her, an unimpressed look on his face.

"OK...besides me sitting in your lap before," she said, embarrassed. "And I'm sorry about that."

Phineas let out a uneven sigh. "Look, I know that you wouldn't try to do anything to hurt me. All of this is just...sudden. It's not bad, don't get me wrong," he added. "Trust me, it's nowhere _near_ bad. I may just need a little bit of time to digest all of this."

Isabella was saddened, but not surprised by his words. "I understand, Phineas. I'm sorry." She woefully made her way off of his lap-

Only to find, for the second time that night, he was holding her steady, not letting her move.

"Of course," Phineas said, a devilish tone in his voice, "that doesn't mean we have to stop."

"But I thought you needed time," Isabella accused.

The redhead looked at the grandfather clock, then back to her. "I have time. I've got all the time I need right now."

Isabella was floored. "Phineas..."

"You're my best friend, Isabella. You will always be my best friend, regardless of what we do tonight. All of this stuff that's happened...it's crazy. Super crazy. But I learned a long time ago that being normal isn't what I do. We do crazy stuff every day. Why should tonight be any different?

"I'm not used to all of this. With you being...here (he motioned at her for emphasis) and all. It's not like anything I've ever done before. And I never would've experienced it if you hadn't taken the initiative. I was scared when you did, but it seems almost natural that we've ended up like this.

"Don't feel bad about what you did. In a odd way, I'm glad you did it. It made me realize just how much I care about you. And quite possibly," he concluded, "something more than that."

Silence.

"Isabella?"

Still nothing.

"Uh oh, I think I broke her," he said to no one in particular. He saw a glossy look go across her face, like her mind was off in another dimension.

"Well, crap. Looks like you've done it this time, Fly-"

Phineas was suddenly interrupted by Isabella grabbing the front of his shirt and smashing her lips into his. Now totally overwhelmed, he tightened his grip on her hips, letting himself get lost in the moment.

After several seconds, they separated, faces inches away from each other. Isabella gazed into his eyes, no longer worried anymore.

"Thank you, Phineas. That means a lot to me."

"No problem," he said. "What are best friends for?"

They sat in the quiet night for a little bit, Phineas absentmindedly stroking her side and Isabella tapping her fingers on the back of Phineas' neck. Thinking about everything that had transpired, she once again got the attention of the ginger teen.

"Phineas?"

"Hmm?"

"You know what I found out tonight?" Isabella stated.

"Besides the fact that no one can do three months of homework in one evening? What else?"

She smiled widely at him. "That you're a _great_ kisser."

The redness was beginning to climb back up Phineas' neck again. "I don't think I'm _that_good, Isabella."

"Oh, I beg to differ," Isabella retorted, her own blush resonating on her cheeks. "You don't believe me?"

"I think you may have brought some unnecessary bias into this project of ours. I'm just saying."

She jokingly punched him in the arm, giggling. "Back on that, are we?"

"Like I said, Isabella," Phineas replied, kissing her gently on the lips, "we've got time. And this project's not over yet."

Delighted, Isabella leaned forward to reciprocate, but suddenly stopped.

"What's up?" Phineas inquired.

"There's one variable that we haven't taken into account yet."

"Oh yeah?" Phineas asked, intrigued. "What's that?"

Isabella leaned back in his grasp and grabbed the jar from the table. Smiling playfully, she held it up between the two of them.

"The absence of light."

His gaze transitioned from the wax-filled jar to Isabella and back again. He grinned, seeing exactly where this was headed. "Are you sure you still want to do this? If tonight's been any indication, I can be a little...unpredictable."

Isabella's chuckle was like music to his ears. "Please. If I can deal with gigantic roller coasters, levitation devices, and having winter in summer," she listed, teasingly jabbing a finger into his chest, "I think I can handle _you_."

Phineas' smile grew wider than ever. "Are we ready to find out, then?"

"Ready when you are."

He leaned his head forward, mirroring her movement until their foreheads made contact over the jar. The flame, only a cinder now, quivered slightly, as if it knew what was coming.

"On three?" Isabella asked.

"On three," responded Phineas.

"One..."

"Two..."

"Three."

They both blew gently on the weak flame of the candle. Its purpose served, the fire finally extinguished, plunging them into total darkness.

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><p><strong>AUTHOR'S NOTE:<strong> _Aaaand_ that's where were going to stop, ladies and gents. Wanna give the kids some privacy, am I right?

And before you ask me in any sort of PM or review...no. No, they don't.

Jiminy...this was the hardest chapter for me to write, and out of everything that I've written so far (plus my unfinished stories on my computer), it's quite possibly the most difficult. Writing really good romance while keeping characters and realism intact is really, really tricky. I did not want to stray into OOC territory when making Phin and Isa's exchanges. It has to be believable, you know. Going from best friends to make out buddies so suddenly is something that they _both_ should not be comfortable with. It's something that no one should be comfortable with right away.

I may go back and revise this a little bit; I'm not entirely happy with some of the pacing/wording going on here. Maybe put some conversation in different spots, and see how that works out. But all in all, I am pretty pleased with how this came out.

We all know that every good story needs a good audience to tell it to. So who's Isabella going to tell her part to? That answer (as well as the conclusion to this story) will be Chapter 4.

Read and review, if you like.


	4. From The Lover To The Friends

_**_Disclaimer:_**_ All characters, places, things, and microorganisms are not owned by me. They belong to Dan, Jeff, and Disney._**  
><strong>_

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><p><em><strong>Chapter 4 – From The Lover to The Friends<strong>_

The mall.

The abode that many a trinket, tchotchke, and heirloom could be found by the unsuspecting patron.

The building where anything and anybody could be seen.

A place where (like a previous fictitious group of teenagers figured out) it was perfect to have a public conversation in complete privacy.

And that's the situation Isabella found herself in.

After the events of that night, she had left Phineas' household, still with homework, but without another heavy burden that was on her shoulders: the unrequited crush she had had on him. The next day, when she sat down to finish it, she found that concentrating on it was very difficult. Her mind was still swimming from all that had occurred over the past 24 hours.

And she needed to get it out.

That's where the troop came in. She had sent out a mass text to the girls, telling them there was an impromptu meeting at the Googolplex Mall. They had all arrived on time (except for Adyson, who did not disclose why she had been late), and Isabella had immediately launched into an account of what had happened. There were the appropriate oohs and aahs, and also a few pink faces from some of the more intimate details. All in all, it was a very eye-opening morning for the girls, who now saw their leader in a different light.

Isabella felt slightly guilty for telling the troop about the whole episode, since she wasn't sure how Phineas was coping. She was assured by Katie, however, who had heard from Irving that Phineas was going about his daily routine just the same, albeit with a slight spring in his step. She didn't ask how Irving knew that, but it was reassuring just the same.

She peered down at her phone nervously, fiddling with her settings. She had not told the troop everything that had transpired that night, and certain preparations had to be made in order for her to even appear in public. At least the troop hadn't noticed-

"So? What happened after that?"

Isabella looked up to see the rest of her troop, holding their various assortments of pens, Slushy Dawgs, and bated breath in anticipation of her next words. Holly had been the one to ask the question, leaning so far over the table she was in danger of touching the countertop with her nose.

"Holly, I already told you everything. Haven't you been paying attention for the last hour?"

"Actually, no." Holly glimpsed over her shoulder to see Ginger and Milly returning with their soda refills. "I was wondering if Ginger was going to beat her record of eating Slushy Dawgs in one sitting."

"Hey, I heard that!"

"Ging, you've had four this afternoon," Milly said, sitting down at the table again. "I don't think even _I_ have had that many in one go. And that's saying something."

"Yes, Ginger," Gretchen added, her calculator set in front of her, "your optimal caloric intake is being eclipsed right now. Perhaps it would be best for you to just get a Veggie Dawg."

"No way!" the Asian teen exclaimed. "I love meat too much!"

Katie glanced across the table at her, pencil poised over her notebook. "...I'm not touching that one."

Isabella, once she was done chuckling at the blonde's joke, glanced next to her to see Holly studying her face carefully, as if she was looking for something. One could only imagine what kind of shenanigans could come from Holly, who was a major purveyor of antics within the troop.

"Wait a minute, what's that?"

Isabella saw that Holly was pointing at her neck, right where her-

Darn it.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Isabella answered, nervously slapping a hand on the side of her neck.

"C'mon, Isabella, you've got nothing to hide, right?"

"Right. Nothing. Because that's what you saw. Nothing."

"Oh yeah? Well, maybe I can ask Phineas over at the Slushy Dawg stand what it is."

"What!" Isabella wheeled around in her chair, and the distraction was set; Holly was quick to grab her hand and tear it away from her neck.

Only for an amused look to appear on her face. And a dangerous one at that.

"Oh. My. Gosh. Is that what I think it is?"

Isabella tore her hand away from Holly, now blushing furiously. "That depends. What do you think it is? On second thought," she quickly added, as Holly was opening her mouth, "don't answer that."

Holly smiled at her troop leader. "I was just going to say, Chief, that you may want to put a little more powder on that bruise. Or invest in a scarf or something." She turned to Ginger, grin evident. "Man, love sure _bites_, doesn't it?"

The sound of a hand slapping a forehead rang through the air. The other girls turned to Adyson, whose crown was now slightly redder. "You're going to Pun Jail for that, Holly."

"Don't you mean the _Pun_itentiary?"

The table erupted in giggling as Adyson made a swipe at Holly's shoulder, not pleased by her joke. However, the scuffle was interrupted by the vibrations from Isabella's phone on the table. Quickly grabbing it, she flipped it open to see who was messaging her.

And immediately blushed again.

"What is it now, Chief?" Gretchen asked.

"Oh, it's...nothing."

Katie smiled, looking up from her notebook. "You keep using that word, and yet we know it's a lie."

Isabella threw her phone into her purse, ignoring Katie's accusation. "It doesn't matter anyway. It's not meant for you."

"Well, why don't we be the judge of that, Chief?" Gretchen questioned.

"Because it's a private message, Gretchen," Isabella replied. She placed her hand over her phone out of habit-

Only to find her phone was no longer in her purse.

"Hey, where'd it-"

The troop leader looked up from her bag to see her second-in-command with a wide grin on her face, her phone dangling from an Extend-o-Hand. The rest of the troop were covering their mouths as to not overrun the table with laughter.

"Where did you get that from?" Isabella nervously asked.

"Your purse, Chief."

"The _hand_, Gretchen."

"Ferb," she said matter-of-factly. "He had an extra one from that afternoon we were breaking the world record for hand shaking; he let me keep it."

Adyson raised an eyebrow at her, smiling slyly. "And was this before or after you were ogling him?"

"I wasn't _ogling_ him, Adyson. I was...merely monitoring his anatomy so that he didn't overexert himself from the humidity that day."

Adyson stared at the smaller girl, clearing trying to think of a comeback, but decided against it. "Whatever, I'm saying you were ogling him."

"Hey!"

"Hello! Can I have my phone back?"

Milly looked away from her fellow troop member's argument to eye her leader, who was trying to reach across the table to get her phone back. "Why don't you just let us look at it? It can't be that bad."

Katie nodded her head in agreement with her best friend. "Mills is right, boss. It's not like you murdered anyone, right?"

Isabella sighed. "No, Katie, I did not murder anyone."

Ginger grabbed the phone from the still-arguing Gretchen and Adyson. "Then what do you have to worry about?" She started strolling through her phone, searching for what Isabella had just gotten. "Text or picture?"

"Picture," Isabella relented, not liking the way this was going.

The Asian teen's eyes scanned her photo gallery, trying to find what had made Isabella so flustered. "Let's see, it wasn't Pinky...wasn't a bird...wasn't-"

She suddenly stopped, eyes affixed to the screen of Isabella's phone.

"What is it, Ging?" Gretchen inquired, having pinned Adyson's arm to the table with her Extend-o-Hand.

Ginger said nothing, her face flushed. Her eyes were wide in astonishment as she passed the phone to Holly. Confused, the black girl glanced at the screen, only for her face to adorn the exact look Ginger had.

The rest of the troop gathered around their leader's phone. Isabella could tell from the immediate reactions that they were just as flustered as she was when she first saw the picture.

Of Phineas.

Showing her his back.

And the...impressions that she had left from last night.

A good minute passed before anyone at the table said anything. It was as if they were too afraid to ask the obvious, to see if what they were looking at was indeed what they thought. Finally, it was Katie who broke the silence.

"Is that...Phineas?"

"Yes," Isabella replied, her reddening face hidden in her hands, "yes it is."

"How did he get those scratches on him?" Adyson said.

The troop leader sighed as she lifted her head up. "When Phineas did...this (she pointed to the mark on her neck), I may or may not have gotten a little...excited about it."

Her friends paused for a moment, and then burst out laughing at her explanation. The laughter continued for a good while even as Isabella wrenched her phone out of Gretchen's contraption.

"Man, Isabella," Holly said, suppressing her giggle, "you guys better be careful from now on. You're going to wreck each other before you guys even get married."

"Yes, Chief," Gretchen added, putting a hand on her best friend's shoulder. "At the very least, you should invest in cutting your cuticles."

The girls continued their good-natured jabbing for a while, as Isabella got lost in her thoughts. For all it was worth, she could handle a little teasing from her friends. The fact of the matter was she finally was with Phineas. Sure, it had not happened the way she had imagined it, but both she and her neighbor understood that night that sometimes things weren't meant to play out the way you wanted. What _had_ happened was something both she and Phineas would never want to give up. They both cared for one another deeply. And they were both appreciative of that.

Even though it took a little longer for them to realize it.

**THE END.**

* * *

><p><strong>AUTHOR'S NOTE:<strong> (Yes, that's not the exact title of the Paul McCartney song. Sue me. I like using song titles as chapter names [even if they're slightly altered].)

If the _Animorphs_ series has taught me anything, it's that people can have wacky conversations in public places and patrons won't even bat an eye. So, thanks for that, Mrs. Applegate.

I'll leave you to inference what exactly happened during the night. Suffice to say, _I_ won't be going into any further detail. But it was...heavy, so to speak.

I would like to thank everyone who has read this fic, and especially the ones who have reviewed. As cliché as this is going to sound, I don't expect a whole lot when I put these stories up. The fact that at least one person likes my work makes me happy. The fact that _several_ people like my stories makes me ecstatic. Thank you to everyone.

I'll be taking a break from Phinbella stuff for a little while. I want to put out a couple of one-shots that I've almost completed, and then I'll get into my next large story. Anyone who's read my DevArt page may have a good idea what it's going to be, but you'll just have to wait and see. As always, check my profile for future story updates and also general updates about what may or may not make Arctimon tick.

Read and review, if you like. Until next time, ladies and gents.


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